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Divided drivers

AMANDA LUCIER/Missourian

Brothers Mike Reichert, left, and Larry Reichert visit with one another at the Hallsville Primary School's Nike sports equipment sale on Saturday, Nov. 3 in Hallsville.

By Amanda Lucier

November 4, 2007 | 7:24 p.m. CST

A sale of Nike sports gear at Hallsville Primary School in Hallsville brought together two brothers: Mike Reichert, 66, of O’Fallon, and his older brother, Larry Reichert, 73, of Centralia. As they took time to sit and catch up with each other’s lives — not common for these brothers — they occupied the far wall of the gymnasium, sitting in maroon plastic chairs and greeting visitors who passed by to examine the bright sweat shirts and T-shirts.

Born in St. Louis, the Reichert brothers are two of 10 brothers and sisters. Over the years, their family has grown to include 35 grandchildren and 35 great-grandchildren. The family still gets together around Christmas wherever they can find a community center or hall big enough to accommodate their crowd.

Larry Reichert, left, and his nephew Dave Reichert chat about Larry's motorcycle outside the Hallsville ...

Larry Reichert arrived at the sale on his white chrome Harley-Davidson motorcycle, which was purchased in January and that now has more than 9,000 miles on its odometer.

“The last time I rode a bike was 52 years ago, before I met my wife,” said Larry Reichert. “I’d be on the golf course, and I’d hear the thunder and see the bike go by. I thought, ‘I want to do it one more time.’ I don’t think you get too old. There’s a man from Paris, Mo., who’s 91 years old, who rides a Honda Trike.”

Mike Reichert, a retired regional vice president for Hanes Hosiery, says he would never get on a bike and spends his free time on the golf course.

Larry Reichert leans in to explain the feeling of being on the motorcycle — the wind, the speed and the freedom to travel.

“Try to explain to someone who has never been on a bike; it’s an impossibility.”

Mike Reichert concurs.

“Some things are unexplainable.”

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